


It's Cold Outside (But Not When I'm With You)

by nativemossy



Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Community: trope_bingo, Cuddling & Snuggling, Huddling For Warmth, Implied Sexual Content, M/M, Pillow & Blanket Forts, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Vacation, cuddling for warmth, more like
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-16
Updated: 2019-05-16
Packaged: 2020-03-06 12:32:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,344
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18851137
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nativemossy/pseuds/nativemossy
Summary: The sweet moment was ruined when a moment later the lights flickered, then sputtered out. Tony’s eyes had gone comically wide, and if the situation didn’t seem so dire Jim would have laughed right in his face.“Ok. Don’t panic.” Tony said, looking panicked.





	It's Cold Outside (But Not When I'm With You)

**Author's Note:**

> for the bingo prompt "Huddle for Warmth"
> 
> yeah this is a departure from my usual ships but i love myself some rhodeytony ok

          Jim had actually been looking forward to this outing for quite some time. It was a long time coming, though not out of lack of trying. Between his attempts to make enough leave time, find a convenient time to drop off the grid for a while, and Tony’s absolute refusal to see a project unfinished meant that they hadn’t had a true vacation together for a long while.

          This meant that it had been long enough that Jim had forgotten the finer points of traveling with a casual Tony Stark. Not the sharp-eyed man in a suit, but the tousled curls, rumpled clothes, and sleepy eyed man that he had gotten to know years before the former. This was the Tony that had frequented lecture halls and recitation discussions; who waltzed into the dining halls in t-shirts that were too big for him and jeans that were far too small. This was Jim’s Tony, who would climb into his bed after getting off the phone with his father, steal his textbooks and barter for them with kisses, and called him in tears the day after they graduated because _ now that I have you how could I ever live without you, Rhodey?  _

          “Do you really need to unpack right now, Platypus? That stuff’ll all be there later! Come look out the windows and  _ ooh _ and  _ aah _ at the snow appropriately.”

          That all said, this was still Tony, whether or not he was Jim's.  

          “I’m coming, I’m coming.” He muttered as he walked back downstairs, eyeing the pile of luggage still resting at the foot. He heaved a sigh and turned towards Tony, who was stood facing the large window that overlooked a gorgeous, snowy landscape. The sun was bright, but fading. The cold light highlighted Tony’s face, showing some new wrinkles and dark circles that Jim had overlooked before. Tony looked older, but it suited him. The wild beauty of his youth had settled into a more mild grace; the grey at his temples with the softness around his eyes made him look aged, sure, but in a way that felt more distinguished and grand. 

          Jim stepped up behind the brunette, wrapping his arms around him and tucking his head under his chin. Tony let out a low hum of contentment, swaying slightly in his arms. Jim took a deep breath, commiting the scene to memory. It was rare that Tony was so relaxed - so happy to rest in James’ arms and just exist together for a while. His breaths were soft and even, and he leaned back into Jim’s chest. Jim squeezed his arms a little tighter, trying irrationally to impart at least a little part of Tony into himself. He pecked a small kiss onto the top of his head, feeling more than hearing Tony’s resulting chuckle.

          “We’ve got two weeks out here.” Tony started, startling James out of his thoughts, “What do you say we explore out there tomorrow, and stay in today?” He coyly glanced back, wiggling his eyebrows in a way that he thought was suggestive but really just showed how much of a dork he really was. Jim loved it.

          “Sure,” He agreed, stepping back and towards the stairs. Tony looked like he was ready to start cheering, crossing the room towards the staircase with long strides. “Since I have no idea which bag the lube’s in, you can help unpack.”

          Jim laughed all the way up the stairs, Tony’s exasperated groan echoing along the high ceilings.

* * *

 

          Some much needed bonding time was followed by a solo shower that quickly became a together shower (which then took far too long because how could Jim even begin to ignore a naked, cheerful, soaped up Tony Stark when he’s standing less than a foot away). They then made their way back downstairs - tripping over the last duffle bag at the bottom of the stairs with some muffled cursing. 

          They took stock of the kitchen; James investigated what pots and pans were at hand while Tony snooped around to see what snacks the grocery service had stocked. Jim noted a small tower of canned soups, just in case they didn’t feel like cooking a full meal one night. He was pulled out of his ruminations by Tony’s triumphant little  _ ahha _ noise when he unearthed a bag of marshmallows, grinning broadly over at James when he caught him looking.

          The sweet moment was ruined when a moment later the lights flickered, then sputtered out. The distant sound of the furnace petered out; Jim hadn’t even realized it was there until it was gone. Tony’s eyes had gone comically wide, and if the situation didn’t seem so dire Jim would have laughed right in his face. As it was he was pretty sure his face looked pretty similar.

          “Ok. Don’t panic.” Tony said, looking panicked. “I’m pretty sure Pepper gave me a cheat sheet for if something like this happened.”

          As it turned out they did have a cheat sheet, and that sheet had a number to call.

          “Tomorrow? Are you sure?” Tony demanded, obviously trying not to whine or sound otherwise unsettled. “Alright, ok… Thank you.” He hung up the phone, heaving a sigh before turning back to Jim.

          “I’m guessing they won’t be able to make it out here until tomorrow, then?” Jim asked, suppressing a shiver as the chill in the air grew. Tony’s disappointed look was answer enough and Jim sighed, reaching over and pulling him into a hug. “It’ll be alright, we’re ok Tones. I saw a stack of wood against the house as we walked in - we can light a fire.” 

          Tony peeked up at him, propping his chin on the cleft of his chest. “Do you think we can roast those marshmallows I found?” He asked, grinning a little stupidly as Jim broke into peals of laughter. 

          “Yeah Tony, we can make the marshmallows.”

          Jim set to work immediately, pulling on a coat and boots and bringing in armfuls of wood. He could see Tony set to his own work, conjuring piles of blankets and pillows from god knew where and gathering them on the couch. He could hear the ruffling of fabric and the soft huffs of Tony’s breathing from behind him while he was clearing the grate, building the driest logs into the beginnings of a blaze.

          When he turned around he saw Tony cozied up in what was a veritable nest of blankets. At some point while Jim was working he had changed into pajama pants and grabbed the marshmallows and what looked like a packet of hot dogs from the fridge. James felt his heart swell when next to all that was a pair of his own sweatpants folded on the arm of the couch. Tony raised his eyebrows expectantly, tucking himself more snugly into his blanket. 

          “You gonna join me or what, sourpatch?” He asked archly, leering as Jim stripped his shirt off and quickly changed pants. His mouth stretched into a grin when Jim finally joined him, though it quickly dissolved with a squawk of outrage when Jim did his best to obnoxiously smother him into the corner of the couch.

          “Rhodeyyyyyyyy” He whined, his hair wild and curled slightly. His cheeks were pink, though at that point Jim wasn’t sure if it was from the chill in the air or their proximity. Jim leaned down and kissed him, because Tony was cute and he could. He slid his hand into Tony’s soft curls, gripping lightly and feeling the rasp of the shorter hairs at the base of his neck. Tony had one hand pressed against his chest and the other around his neck, pulling him closer under the blankets.

          They exchanged lazy kisses like that for a while, huffing soft little laughs into the scant air between each other. The snow blew on outside the walls but they barely noticed, too occupied with each other to even begin to care.

They had all the time in the world to explore - all they really needed in that moment was each other. 

**Author's Note:**

> come chat with me on [tumblr](https://nativemossy.tumblr.com/), [pillowfort](https://www.pillowfort.social/nativemossy), or [dreamwidth](https://nativemossy.dreamwidth.org/)!


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